PMD: Shadows Awakened
by Goodra
Summary: Princess Lucy has run away from home and joins a Guild where she is forced to team up with an obnoxious Zoroark. Meanwhile, sinister plots are swirling and the sudden appearance of beings known as Shadow Pokemon are disrupting the peaceful life the Pokemon once had. Will Lucy be able to overcome the challenges that appear before her. (May or may not be a good summary, but...)
1. Chapter 1: Into the Night

**I absolutely love the Mystery Dungeon games, and decided to make my own story of one. I hope y'all like it. Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

**Chapter 1: Into the Night**

"Lucy, it's time to go!" My mother's irritated voice came from the other side of the door.

I sighed. Why did I have to be the princess? Why did I have to be the first-born?

"I'll be out in a minute!" I shouted.

"Well hurry it up, we don't have all day!"

Groaning, I banged my head against the wall, completely exasperated.

Brushing my fur till it was nice and smooth, I proceeded to tuck a Gracidea flower behind my right ear, which signified royalty.

I hated life here, it was boring, and I couldn't stand being a princess.

Everyone treated me the same damn way. I didn't have any friends, mother never allowed me to mingle with 'commoners'.

The only Pokémon I ever got to talk to were my siblings, Riley and Azula, who were still in their Riolu forms.

Today was supposed to be a 'special' day though…the choosing of my mate.

I've met each of my suitors, but I didn't like any of them.

One was a Lucario named Woolrick, a Gallade named Nexus, and a Greninja named Crona. Each one of them was the prince of their respective tribes.

The Greninja clearly had the disadvantage being a Dark Type against two Fighting Types.

The goal here was to join our tribe and one of the other three tribes together through marriage. Of course, I had to be the oldest child. I do wonder though if any of them liked me, or if they were forced into this.

Sighing once again, I exited the house and met up with my parents. Riley and Azula were staying with our grandparents while the fight went on.

Mother was very impatient, annoyed that she had to wait on me while father was very calm, the complete opposite of mother.

"You look beautiful, dear." Father smiled.

"Thank you father."

"We must go now or we'll be late." Mother tapped her foot impatiently.

"Alright, calm down, we're leaving." Father rolled his eyes.

I followed me parents to a bit arena where the 3 potential mates, their parents, and our tribe's inhabitants were at.

The princes all waved at me with smiles plastered onto their faces and I waved back, forcing one onto my own.

We exchanged greetings with their parents and went to sit in our chairs.

Honestly, out of the three, I hoped that the Greninja didn't win I mean, I don't really like any of them, but the tongue scarf thing wasn't very appealing to me.

Father stood from his chair. "Ladies and gentlemen, the time has come the choosing of Princess Lucy's mate. Asking for her hand in marriage is Prince Woolrick of the Northern Lucario Tribe, Prince Nexus of the Gallade Tribe, and Prince Crona of the Greninja Tribe. Gentlemen, I wish you luck. Now, let the battle begin!"

The battle commenced, but I paid little attention, daydreaming instead.

I dreamt of exploring and going on adventures. Father used to tell me stories of famous exploration teams when I was just a little Riolu.

I've always wanted to be on an exploration team since then, but I never did. I've barely even been outside the village.

Thunderous applause slapped me back into reality. Inside the arena, only one Pokémon was left standing: Nexus the Gallade.

I sighed in slight relief. At least it wasn't the Greninja.

Nexus walked proudly to his parents, then to mine, and finally, me.

Bowing, he smiled. "Princess Lucy, it is a great honor to be your chosen mate."

Nodding, I gave a small smile. "A pleasure, Prince Nexus."

He took my hand and kissed it, leaving afterwards.

There was a rule here that the groom/bride was not allowed to see each other until the wedding day…that just so happened to be tomorrow.

Why couldn't it be a week from now? That way I could enjoy what little time I have left of being single, and later tonight, there would be a celebration among the tribe in order to commemorate my wedding with Prince Nexus.

This wasn't going to be a very joyous occasion for me in the slightest.

I was ushered back home and into my room where I was told to prepare for tonight's celebration.

Sitting on the floor, I sighed. Why couldn't I just get away from this place? Why can't I just leave?

Wait a minute…I can just leave! I could run away!

That option had never occurred to me, I had just endured my time here.

I would have to wait till right before the celebration though while everyone was at the main square.

Judging by the sun's position in the sky though, that wouldn't be till another two or three hours.

Now I just had to wait...

~Someplace else~

The lone Machoke fell to the ground with a heavy thud, knocked out by a powerful Flamethrower from the Shiny Zoroark in front of him.

"Humph, and they doubted my abilities. A Type disadvantage won't be enough to bring me down." He sneered.

Taking some rope out of his bag, the fox began to tie the Machoke's hands and feet together so he couldn't escape.

"Now, back to the Guild with this one." He hefted the unconscious Pokémon over his shoulder, groaning at the weight.

On his way back, the Machoke woke up and started squirming around.

The Zoroark dropped his captive to the ground, cursing. "Dammit, shut the hell up!"

Punching him in the face, the Fighting Type became quiet once again, falling into unconsciousness.

An hour later, a large building came into view.

It looked like a castle from an old storybook, complete with towers and everything, and had a sign out front that read "The Four Seasons Guild".

~Lucy~

It's about time, another hour and everyone would be in the village square.

My parents won't be here until that time, so I have plenty of time to myself, and won't have to worry about leaving early.

Would I miss this place? Arceus, no, what I would miss was my father, grandfather, and siblings.

I could probably live with that though. As long as I could get out of here before tomorrow, I would be fine.

I hope there aren't any guards though. Even though I'm confident I could best them in battle, I would prefer not to make a scene.

A knock on my door came. Has it been an hour already? "Lucy, it's time to go! Don't keep us waiting!"

"Yes, mother!" I called.

Shit, I've got to go now. Mother is very impatient and it won't be long till she comes back.

I looked out the balcony. It was a two-floor drop down and there was a tree next to the wall.

It was an easy climb down. Quickly reaching the bottom branch, I hopped off and landed safely onto the ground below.

After looking to see if anyone was around, I dashed off towards the forest, only to be grabbed from behind as I reached the safety of the trees.

Turning around to Power-Up-Punch my captor, I stopped mid-punch.

It was my grandfather, head of the guard.

"G-Grandfather!"

"Lucy…you're…running away aren't you?" He asked sadly.

I flinched under his gaze. "Y-Yes…" There was no point in lying, he already knew my intentions.

To my surprise, he slowly let go of me and sighed. "I figured as much…you never really liked it here, did you?"

Shaking my head, my voice started to crack. "No, I hate it here! I hate this life and I don't want to marry Nexus! I can't stay here anymore!"

Suddenly, he reached up and gently took the Gracidea Flower off my head. "Then go. You deserve to have a life of your own, not the one that was chosen for you. I'll take the Gracidea Flower elsewhere, without it, it'll help you blend in with the people around you."

With tears now steaming from my eyes, I embraced him tightly. "That you, grandfather, I love you…"

"I love you too, Lucy. Always remember that, and always have faith and courage by your side. Now go before they notice. The nearest place is Daylight Square, it's a three day journey from here…. have a safe trip, and a wonderful life."

We let go of each other with one last goodbye, not looking back as I raced through the trees.

**Yea, I decided to not go with the usual human turning into a Pokemon thing. I just wanted to do something different, especially since three of my current ones having a human that transformed into a Pokemon. Anyways, I really hope y'all enjoyed this, Chapter 2 will hopefully be done soon. **


	2. Chapter 2: The Four Seasons Guild

**Yay! Chapter 2's done! Hope y'all like it. Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

**Chapter 2: The Four Seasons Guild**

Grandfather was right, it took three days to reach Daylight Square.

It was quite beautiful too. There was a gorgeous fountain in the center with Milotic statues around it, as well as a multitude of colorful flowers surrounding its base.

There were all kinds of Pokémon here too, all smiling and laughing as they talked to each other. It was quite lively and cheerful, and just seeing all those cheerful faces made me happy.

"Excuse me, are you new here?" A voice asked.

Startled, I looked over to see a large pudgy Dragon with specks of goo dripping off of it.

Most of its body was a light lavender color while the underside was mauve. It had two kind, bright green eyes with two green spots on both sides of its face, and three others on the thick, curved tail. Two sets of antennae were perched atop the head; one set short, skinny, and standing up while the other set was long, thick, drooped downwards, and curved.

I think this Pokémon is called a Goodra.

"Um, yeah…"

The Goodra smiled. "Welcome to Daylight Square then. My name is Tsubaki, it's nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too, I'm Lucy." We shook hands, some of the goo from hers sticking onto mine.

"So Lucy, what brings you to Daylight Square?" She asked.

Honestly, the only reason I came here was because of my grandfather, but maybe Tsubaki knows where a Guild is.

"Do you happen to know where any Guilds are?"

Tsubaki's eyes gleamed. "Come with me, there's a list of Guilds hanging up near the Milotic fountain."

I nodded and followed her to the bulletin board that had different papers scattered across it. Surprisingly though, we were the only ones there.

Tsubaki pointed to a piece of paper. "There are lots of Guilds, but most only deal with a certain Type of Pokemon. There are a few that will accept any Type though. Since you're a Dual Type, you would only be able to join an all Types Guild, a Fighting Guild, or a Steel Guild."

Looking through the paper, I noted that Tsubaki was right; most of the Guilds on there were for specific Types.

**Only Type Guilds**

~Steel- The Ironworks Guild

~Fighting- The Martial Arts Guild

~Dragon- The Dragonmark Guild

~Fairy- The Fairy Tail Guild

~Water- The Flood Guild

~Fire- The Inferno Guild

~Grass- The Forest Guild

~Electric- The Lightning Guild

~Flying- The Heavens Guild

~Normal- The Neutrality Guild

~Dark- The Nightmare Guild

~Psychic- The Grace Guild

~Poison- The Toxic Guild

~Ground- The Underground Guild

~Rock- The Sturdy Guild

~Ghost- The Phantom Guild

~Bug- The Insect Guild

~Ice- The Frozen Guild

**All Type Guilds**

~The Four Seasons Guild

"Why is there only one Guild listed for all Types?" I asked.

"Well, there are other Guilds that recruit members of all Types, but most prefer to post in larger towns or squares. Another Guild known as the Starlight Guild was posted on here, but they took their name off the list just recently. During the night a few days ago, a band of unknown Pokémon destroyed the Guild. Since they're still repairing everything, they're not recruiting anyone right now." She stated.

"Oh…" Why would anyone attack a Guild, especially if it's full of strong Pokémon?

"Well then, have you figured out which of the three you would like to join?" The Goodra asked.

"Hm…" Honestly, a Guild designated to a certain Type seemed awfully boring, and having been around Fighting and Steel Pokémon my whole life, it didn't seem very appealing. An all Types Guild sounded very exciting. "The Four Seasons Guild."

Her smile brightened considerably. "Great, the Four Seasons Guild is located just outside Daylight Square. If you'll follow me, I can take you there."

"Thanks." I smiled.

"No problem." She chuckled.

"Hey, Tsubaki?" I asked, walking beside her.

"Yes?" The Goodra hummed.

"Why is everyone so cheerful?" Everywhere I looked, Pokémon were smiling and laughing. There wasn't even a single sad face as far as I could see.

"Hm…the Pokémon at Daylight Square are usually like this. Everyone here is just a ray of sunshine. Only by rare occasion will something bad happen here. With so many smiling faces the atmosphere is quite enjoyable." She grinned.

"Hm…" I've never seen so many happy faces before. The atmosphere was enjoyable, but it's strange to see not even one sad or mad face.

The rest of the walk was silent, well…except for Tsubaki's humming. Apparently Goodra were very friendly and loving, much unlike some species of Pokémon.

"We're here." She stopped as a giant building stood in front of us.

It was a castle made of grey stones. Four towers adorned the top of it, one on every corner. Four flags also stood atop each one, each of them depicting a seen of each season, spring, summer, fall, and winter. Completing the structure was a drawbridge that was currently down, providing access into the structure as a water filled moat lay beneath it.

"Well, what do you think?" Tsubaki gestured towards it.

"It's…it looks…amazing." It really was a grand structure; I wonder what it looked like on the inside.

The Goodra giggled. "It's even more amazing on the inside. Come on, let's go in."

I nodded as she started walking across the bridge and followed close behind.

Stepping inside the castle, I gaped in awe. There was red carpet that extended all through the long hallway and diamond chandeliers hung from the ceiling. Large stain glass windows adorned the hallway with red drapes at their sides.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Tsubaki grinned at me.

"Yea." It was breathtaking.

"This place belongs to Guildmaster Darian. His family is of royal descent. He's the only one left though, the rest of his family was murdered and he inherited the castle." The Goodra stated.

"His family was murdered? That's terrible…" I said sadly.

"Yea, it was a tough time for him. After a time he stepped down from his role as prince and opened up the Guild." Tsubaki explained.

"Wow…did they ever catch the murders?" I asked.

"Yea, Darian caught them himself two years later." She nodded.

We now entered a large room where about maybe two-dozen Pokémon stood around bulletin boards.

It was decorated the same way as the previous hallway and also had golden candleholders spaced out among the walls as well.

Following Tsubaki, she approached a Braixen. "Hello, Miss Blair." She greeted.

"Hello, Tsubaki." She nodded back. Her eyes then rested on me. "Oh? Who's this? A new recruit?"

"Yes ma'am. This is Lucy." She introduced me.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you Lucy. As you've heard already, my name is Blair." The Braixen smiled, shaking my hand.

"It's a pleasure to meet you too, Miss Blair." I smiled back.

Miss Blair nodded. "Let me take you to Guildmaster Darian. Tsubaki, you may come too."

"Ok. Come on Lucy." She waved towards me as her and the Braixen started to walk away.

Nodding, I followed them to a large door that had all kinds of intricate designs carved into it.

Miss Blair knocked on the big door. "Guildmaster Darian, it's Blair. May I come in?"

"You may enter." A deep voice sounded from across the other side.

Miss Blair opened up the door and we all stepped in.

Getting a close look at the Guildmaster, I now understood the name of 'Four Seasons'. Darian was a Sawsbuck and was in his Spring Form.

"Hello, Guildmaster Darian. Tsubaki has brought a new recruit."

"Hm? What's your name?" The Sawsbuck looked me over.

"Lucy." I replied.

"Well, Lucy, you don't seem like a suspicious Pokémon. Welcome to the Four Seasons Guild."

**I wasn't actually sure how to end this chapter, but I guess this part'll do. **


	3. Chapter 3: Team Delusion

**I've actually had this done for a few days, but when you're typing up two different research papers at the same time...you just don't want to type anything else for a bit. Anyways, here's Chapter 3, hope y'all enjoy it.**

**Chapter 3: Team Delusion**

After Guildmaster Darian allowed me to become a member of the Guild, he walked to the far left of the and stood in front of an emerald encrusted chest.

Nudging it open, the Sawsbuck prodded through it and clenched a small object in his mouth.

As he came to stand in front of me once again, Guildmaster Darian motioned for me to take the object.

"This is your Explorer Badge. Take it with you wherever you go. It is an essential item detailing that you are an Explorer and not an imposter."

I nodded and looked at the badge. It appeared to be made out of Silver Ultrium with an imitation sapphire resting in the center. 'Four Seasons Guild' was carved in small, intricate calligraphy on its surface.

It wasn't anything too fancy, didn't want anyone stealing it, and anyone with a trained eye could tell that the stone was fake.

"Now, the only task left is to assign you to a team."

The Sawsbuck walked behind a large pine desk that was situated in the middle of the room and started shifting through numerous papers.

"Hm…" His brows furrowed. "You shall be in Team Delusion with-" Darian was suddenly cut off short by the shrill exclamations of Miss Blair and Tsubaki.

"What? Why would you put here with him?" The Braixen stared in disbelief.

"Why can't Lucy be in my team? We're already friends, too! She doesn't need to be with someone like him!" Tsubaki exclaimed.

How bad could that Pokémon be that even Tsubaki was protesting my joining his team, and Tsubaki was an Explorer? Why didn't she tell me?

Darian sighed. "Believe me I would, but your team is full. In fact, everyone's team is full except for Sly's. It's the only option I have."

"Um…is he really that bad?" I asked, feeling a little uncomfortable with the situation.

"Sly isn't really the friendly Pokémon here. He's arrogant, obnoxious, and can be incredibly hard to get along with, but under all that he does have a caring heart." Darian said.

"A caring heart? I'll believe that when I see it." Miss Blair scowled.

"Believe me, Blair. If he didn't, then I wouldn't have allowed him to join this Guild. Do you question my judgment?" The Sawsbuck replied.

Tsubaki began to speak as Miss Blair stood there quietly. "Well, even though I don't like this, maybe having a teammate like you will help soften him up a bit." Tsubaki gave me a small smile.

I nodded uncertainly, but didn't say anything.

"Well now that the matter has been settled, Tsubaki, would you mind showing Lucy around the Guild?" Darian asked the Goodra.

"Sure thing, Guildmaster. Come on Lucy, let's go." Tsubaki replied.

"Ok. Thank you Guildmaster for allowing me to join you Guild." I thanked him.

He nodded his head and I followed Tsubaki out, closing the door behind us.

"Hey, Tsubaki? Why didn't you tell me that you were on an Exploration Team?" I asked.

"Oh, um…to be honest it never really crossed my mind." She smiled sheepishly. "But, anyways, this room is where the request boards are. There are all sorts of requests found here. They range in levels of difficulty. Some jobs require finding lost items; others are for escorting Pokémon, and finally, there are the ones that require the use of catching criminals which also happens to be Sly's specialty. These all take place in areas known as Mystery Dungeons." She explained.

"Mystery Dungeons?" I'd heard the name from my Grandfather before, but I didn't really know what they were.

"Mystery Dungeons are labyrinth-like areas with a range of floors from 3 up to 99 of them. The layout of a Mystery Dungeon changes each time you enter it, making it virtually impossible to predict how to get through it. They really are fun places to explore." The Goodra smiled.

I nodded my head at her explanation, they did sound like really cool places.

Tsubaki was about to say something else, but was suddenly interrupted by a Gabite.

"Yo, Tsubaki! Who's your friend there?" He asked.

"Hello, Drax. This is Lucy, she just joined us, and I'm giving her a tour of the Guild." She replied.

"Really? Well then, welcome to the Guild Lucy. Whose team are you in."? He smiled.

"Thank you, Drax." I smiled. "I'm in Team Delusion with someone named Sly."

Drax arched an eyebrow. "Sly? He's not going to like that. Surely the Guildmaster could have put you with someone else."

The Goodra beside me sighed and shook her head. "Guildmaster Darian said that every team is full. Putting her with Sly was his only option."

"Well that's a damn shame. It would've been nice to have you in my team." He winked at me. "Oh, and good luck with Sly, you'll need it."

I gave him a small smile. "Thanks."

He nodded and walked off, going over to one of the many request boards around us.

"Well, now that that's over, why don't I show you around some more?" Tsubaki asked.

"Ok." The Goodra started to walk off once again and I continued to follow her.

We entered a large room where a handful of Pokémon were gathered around, sitting on couches and chair as they conversed with one another.

"This is the parlor room where we come and hang out and share information with each other." Tsubaki explained.

Next, she showed me where the dining hall and the training room. We were now going up a flight of stairs that spiraled around the inside of one of the four towers.

"All the towers here are used to house most of the Exploration Teams, there are others though that live in the halls of the castle. Sly is one of the Pokémon that resides in this tower." She looked at me.

I was about to respond, but was interrupted by a sudden commotion above me.

A stream of fire blasted through a nearby door and a Shiny Braviary came flying out with some of his tail feathers slightly burnt.

"What the hell, dude? How many times has the Guildmaster asked you to quit using Flamethrower while inside the castle?" The bird screeched.

"Well, I would if you'd stay the hell away from me!" A Shiny Zoroark stepped out, snarling at the Braviary.

The two in front of us continued to bicker back and forth to each other until Tsubaki had had enough. "Would you two stop?" She fired a dark purple blast of draconic energy at the two.

The two quarreling Pokémon yelped in surprise as the powerful Dragon Pulse hit.

What the fuck? Stay out of this Tsubaki!" The Zoroark snarled.

"Shut it, Sly." She glared.

Wait…that's Sly? Out of every Pokémon imaginable, I never expected him to be a Zoroark.

Sly's piercing gaze moved onto me. "Who the hell is this?"

Tsubaki crossed her arms. "Sly, this is Lucy, your new teammate."

"WHAT?"

**Sly's a dick ain't he? Lol, how shall he come to terms with having a new teammate? Hm...guess we'll find out next chapter, laters XP **


	4. Chapter 4: First Impressions

**Hey guys, sorry I haven't updated in a few weeks, but I've been a little busy and haven't really felt like writing. Oh, on the last chapter, I made a little edit, I accidentally used the names Foxstream and Delusion as the team name. That was an accident, Foxstream was the original name I had chosen to use as the team name, but halfway through I decided to change it to Delusion and forgot to change it on some parts. I do hope y'all enjoy this chapter though. Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

**Chapter 4: First Impressions**

The Braviary snickered and covered his face with his wing, obviously trying not a laugh. "W-what's your name new girl? I'm Gale."

"Um…Lucy." This was going to be incredibly awkward wasn't it?

"W-well Lucy, y-you have my sympathies." Gale was having a terrible time at keeping his laughter in check.

"Sympathy? What the hell does she get sympathy for?" The enraged Zoroark snapped.

"Because she has to put up with you!" The bird was now trying to compose himself.

"What does that mean you bastard?" Shy glared.

"It means you're an asshole!" Gale snickered.

Sly snarled and shifted his gaze over to me. "We're getting this settled right now!" He then proceeded to grab my arm and drag me down the stairs.

"Lucy!" Tsubaki and the Braviary started to follow after us.

"Hey, let go of me!" What the hell's wrong with him?

His grip only tightened as I continued to struggle against him until it felt as if my wrist was about to break.

Heads turned in our direction when we passed, curious as to what the enraged Zoroark was up to.

When we reached the request room, Guildmaster Darian was standing outside his office. It was like he was waiting for us…

"Darian! What's the meaning of this?" He bellowed.

"Sly…why are you handling miss Lucy so roughly? That's not how you treat your partner." Darian ignored his question.

Sly growled and ever so slowly let go of my arm. "What…is…the…meaning…of…this?"

"The 'meaning of this' is that it's about time you got a partner. Now, I've looked the other way for a while now, but I can't any longer. _Everyone _needs a partner, including you Sly." The Guildmaster said.

"You're wrong! I don't need a partner! Let someone else have her, I don't need her!" Sly pointed a clawed finger at me.

"Excuse me, but don't I get a say in this?" I shifted around, irritated at the obnoxious and arrogant Zoroark in front of me.

"No!" Sly turned to glare at me this time.

Darian let out an exasperated sigh. "Sly, I'm not going to change my mind. Lucy is your partner and that's final."

"If you don't mind Guildmaster, I have a suggestion." Gale and Tsubaki stepped in from behind me.

"Oh, and what would that be?" The Guildmaster asked.

"Why don't they have a battle? If Lucy wins, she will be allowed to be Sly's partner no matter how much he hates it and if Sly wins, Lucy will join a different team, even if they're all full, or she can form her own team."

"Or better yet, she can just leave." Sly growled.

"She will do no such thing Sly. However, I will agree to Gale's proposition. Lucy, Sly, do you agree to his terms?" Darian looked over both of us.

"Yes!" Sly replied, rather aggressively.

I sighed as four pairs of eyes trained on me. "…Yes."

Sly's eyes gleamed viciously as he sneered. "Get ready to get your ass handed to ya." He turned and left.

"You're letting them fight? Sly's the best fighter in here!" Tsubaki exclaimed.

"Even so, I think she can beat him. Even if Lucy loses, it will be an interesting match to witness." Darian nodded.

"I guess…" The dragon sighed, clearly unhappy with the situation at hand.

"Well, let's get going then, shall we?" Gale made a swooping gesture with his wing and followed after Sly.

Giving an exasperated sigh, I followed suit, Darian and Tsubaki trailing behind me. Why do I have to do this?

Much to my dismay, the Training Room was quite…lively. At least a dozen Pokémon stood around the battlefield, with Sly in the center.

As I approached the center of the room, whispers could be heard amongst the other Pokémon here.

"Hey, look! There she is!"

"That's her? I think Sly's going to have a hard time with this one."

"Are you kidding? He can burn her to a crisp using Flamethrower! Focus Blast will do a nasty bit of damage too."

"Maybe, but Steel Types are incredibly sturdy. She can do quite a bit of damage herself if she uses moves such as Aura Sphere and Close Combat."

"You're right, but how powerful is she? Will she be strong enough to actually beat Sly?"

"We'll just have to wait and see."

The whispering was brought to a halt as I stood opposite of Sly. The air was thick with tension, as the gathered Pokémon waited with bated breath to see which of us would triumph.

As I waited for the battle to start, I took this opportunity to study the Zoroark's aura. The aura was incredibly aggressive, lashing out in great wisps. There was also a sense of eagerness to it, it was clearly evident that Sly loved to battle, and was definitely looking forward to besting me in battle…but…there was also something else there, it was faint, but I could just barely make it out…interest?

I didn't get to analyze it any further as crimson flames started to leak from his unopened maw.

I dodged the stream of flames quite easily, although a few of the Pokémon behind me who hadn't scrambled away in time singed pretty badly. I charged up an Aura Sphere and fired it. Halfway between us though, it collided with an oncoming Focus Blast and exploded, filling the room momentarily with smoke.

It didn't last long though as Gale and the other Flying Types blew it away within seconds using their powerful wings.

There was something off though once the smoke finally cleared away…Sly had vanished. Everyone looked around frantically for the missing Zoroark, but he was nowhere to be found.

"Lucy!" I recognized the voice of Drax.

Spotting him in the crowd, I followed his gaze upwards. Coming from up above me, Sly was falling head first at me, claws coated in a form of dark energy. How the hell did he get up there?

I brought an arm up just in time to avoid being clawed in the face, and brought the other one up to send him flying with a Bullet Punch.

Surprise and irritation flickered in his aura, but disappeared as he released a wide ranged Flamethrower. Unable to doge all of it, my right leg was caught in the blaze.

I winced in pain as I brought my leg out of the fire. The fur was charred black and burned off in some places, revealing the irritated skin underneath. Sly was going all out if the flames were that hot.

As my burned leg distracted me, Sly made a run for me once again with claws cloaked in dark energy. He swiped them across my chest and I yelped in pain. Of course I resisted Dark Type attacks thanks to my Fighting Type attributes, but the attack still hurt.

He leapt back before I could strike him back, but I used Extreme Speed to catch up and continued on with a Close Combat. The Zoroark sailed through the air and landed on the ground with a _thud_ from the impact.

He didn't get back up…I had won.


	5. Chapter 5: First Night

**I'm so sorry I haven't updated in so long! I've just been busy and haven't wrote much at all. I'm going to start working on the next chapter right away though, so hopefully it will be up sooner! Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

**Chapter 5: First Night**

Sly didn't get back up for a few minutes, but when he did, he was furious. The Zoroark didn't even say anything, just left, his aura completely clouded in anger.

The room grew dead silent, not a sound was heard. If someone had dropped a pin, you'd be able to hear it a mile away. Nobody dared speak a word for minutes in the case the angered fox overheard.

After those tense few minutes of silence however, the Training Room erupted into a mass of cheering.

The first ones to congratulate me were Tsubaki, Gale, and Drax.

"That was an amazing battle, Lucy! You were fantastic!" The Goodra exclaimed excitedly.

"Congrats, newbie. You're officially the first Pokemon to beat Sly in battle." Gale laughed.

Drax gave me a hard pat on the back and smiled. "Way to sock it him! I've never seen Sly so pissed before, though. He shouldn't be able to try anything on you though if he doesn't want his ass kicked again." He chuckled.

Guildmaster Darian and Miss Blair made their appearances. "Well done, Lucy. Now that you've beaten Sly, you shall be allowed to stay as a part of Team Delusion." The Sawsbuck dipped his head.

"Yes, congratulations. Although, I am a bit worried though." Miss Blair chimed in.

"Thank you everyone, but why are you worried Miss Blair?" Her remark making me a bit nervous.

"Oh, it's nothing really. I'm just a bit concerned about how Sly will treat you." The Braixen sighed.

"There's nothing to worry about, Blair. I'm sure Lucy can handle anything Sly will throw at her." Darian tried to reassure her.

"But what if he attacks her while on missions...or in her sleep?"

Drax decided to step in. "Sly may be obnoxious and hard to get along with, but I don't think even he would do something like that."

Gale and Tsubaki nodded their heads. "Sly doesn't even do that to his targets. He always play a fair fight...well, excluding his illusions. For example, when my team and his were paired up for a particularly strong outlaw. When we reached our target however, he was asleep. He had fallen onto a spore trap. Now, my team wanted to capture him then and there, but Sly wouldn't let us. He actually made up wait until he woke up so we could fight and capture fair and square. If he can't even do that to an enemy, there's no way in hell he would do that to Lucy." The Shiny Braviary stated.

Guildmaster Darian nodded his head at the three Pokemon. "Does that soothe your worries, Blair?"

Miss Blair let out an exasperated sigh. "Somewhat...I still don't think they should sleep in the same room though...just to be on the safe side."

Darian thought for a moment. "Hm...I guess that could be arranged. We do have a few rooms available. I'll see to it after dinner."

"W-wait! You don't have to do that! I'll just sleep in Sly's room, it's no problem!"I exclaimed. I didn't want them to bother themselves like that. I would just have to put up with Sly and his antics, whatever they may be.

"Lucy, we're only doing this as a precaution. While we're sure he won't do anything to you, Sly can be unpredictable. Once he's warmed up to you, or at least less hostile, we'll move you into his room." Darian said and began to walk off, Miss Blair following him.

"But…" I trailed off, sighing.

"Aw don't sweat it, Lucy. Everything will be fine. They're just worried." Drax winked.

"I guess...but still." I watched the Sawsbuck and Braixen disappear into the next room.

Overhead a bell started to chime and Gale grinned. "Yo, looks like dinner's done. Let's go."

With the subject changed, I hesitantly followed my companions into the dining hall. As soon as we stepped through the door, our noses were assaulted with all kinds of delicious aromas; it smelt heavenly.

Given, having been a princess, I was used to having all kinds of delectable foods, but this smelled far better than anything I've ever had.

Pokemon were swarming in behind us as we made way to the food line where a cheerful looking Simisage was standing behind it wearing a chef's hat and a ladle in hand.

Going down the line, I picked up a plate just like those in front of me and began to fill it with sweet looking berries and freshly baked bread. There was all kinds of soups and meats as well.

Stopping to wait for the line to start moving again, a voice sounded beside me. "Hey, you're Lucy right? The new recruit?"

I looked up to see the Simisage smiling at me. "Um, y-yes?" I replied uncertainly.

"Well, nice to meet you, Lucy!" I'm Cilan, the head chef! I heard from someone that you gave Sly quite a beatin there, missy!" He grinned widely.

"Nice to meet you too, Mr. Cilan! So, word travels fast around here doesn't it?" I chuckled nervously.

"You bet it does missy! Nothin goes unheard of inside these walls! You can be sure of that!"

"Oh, great…" I mumbled, reaching for a few strips of unknown meat.

"Ah, careful there lass. That there's Lucario meat." The Simisage warned, looking at the pieces of cooked flesh.

"W-what?!" I quickly dropped the suddenly repulsive food and took a panicked step back, my face growing unbelievably pale. These Pokemon eat Lucarios?!

Much to my dismay, everyone around me began to laugh and Cilan's face broke out into a wide grin. "Ahaha, I'm just messin with ya, girlie! None of this is real. All it is is a combination of berries, vegetables, and spices to make it look, and smell like, the real thing!"

"Oh...hehe…" I shuffled uncomfortably, a little color coming back to my pale face.

I was thankful when the line began to move again, no offense to Cilan, but I'm just not sure if I can take another joke like that.

Apprehensively, I took a few different slabs of the meat substitutes, hoping that the Simisage had no reason to lie to me.

"Hey, don't let that shake you up too much, Lucy, he does that to all the newbies. Oh, and congrats on the match." A Scyther behind me spoke up.

I turned to him and nodded. "Don't worry, I won't, and thanks...um…"

"Akira."

"Nice to meet you then, Akira." I smiled.

"Nice to meet you too, Lucy. Well, gotta go, see ya!" He flashed a toothy grin before speeding off.

Deciding that I had enough food, I disengaged myself for the line and found the table where Tsubaki, Drax, and Gale were sitting at.

"So, did Cilan give you the newbie treatment?" The Shiny Braviary smirked.

"Sorta…" I scratched the back of my head in embarrassment.

"Hahaha, he does that to everybody! I remember when he did that to Tsubaki! She fainted on the spot! Poor thing was too scared to even come near Cilan for two whole weeks!" Drax cackled.

The Goodra's face heated up from embarrassment. "Drax! You said you wouldn't say anything about that!"

"Sorry, but it had to be said!" The Gabite was laughing uncontrollably at the memory of it.

I couldn't help but join in the laughter as well, just picturing the massive Dragon fainting in the middle of the dining hall was just too much!

Tsubaki started to pout I apologized. "I'm sorry Tsubaki, I'll stop." Taking deep breathes, I finally managed to calm down enough so I wasn't laughing anymore.

The rest of dinner was spent with my three companions telling embarrassing stories about each other and being congratulated by random guild members who happened to be passing by.

In all honesty...this was the most fun I've had in years.

**So nothing much really happened much this chapter, but I promise the next one will have more story progression**


	6. Chapter 6: Shadows of Frozen Forest

**Hey, I'm back and with an extra long chapter for you guys :D (Ok, well, not THAT much longer, but it's at least 700 words longer than the previous one. Giving this one a little over 2,100 words!). Now, there isn't AS MUCH story progression as I'd like to have, but it's definitely something ^.^ Hope y'all enjoy this chapter! Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

**Oh! And one more thing before I leave y'all with this. How would y'all like it if y'all could submit characters for this? Like, just submitting a Pokemon, their name, and like what Guild you'd have them join (if this happens, depending on how many submit, some would have to go over to other Guilds beside Four Seasons). I thought it would be a cool idea to do! If y'all like this idea, then feel free to shoot me a message with an idea for your characters! Ok, onto the story!**

**Chapter 6: Shadows of Frozen Forest**

"_HOOOONK" _

Waking from my slumber, I fell out of my warm bed and onto the cold, stone floor beneath me with a startled 'yelp'.

"What the hell?" I groaned, coming to a sitting position while groggily trying to rub the sleep from my tired eyes.

The door to my room opened and in came a bright and cheerful Goodra. "Rise and shine, Lucy! It's time to get ready for your first mission!" She exclaimed happily.

I looked through an opening in the door to gaze out one of the many tower windows. It was barely even sunrise. "What the hell was that noise?" I groaned again.

The ecstatic Dragon giggled. "Oh, that was Trevor, one of the members of the Guild. It's his duty to wake everyone up in the morning. He's an Exploud by the way."

An Exploud? No wonder it was so loud…

Tsubaki stepped further into the room and grabbed my arm, successfully pulling me up to my feet. "Come on, let's go already!"

A male voice chuckled softly from the doorway. "Come now, Tsubaki. Let the lady wake up. Not everyone can handle such cheerfulness this early in the morning." A Sylveon smiled.

"But, Cosmo!" She whined in a high-pitched, child like voice.

"Cosmo's right, Tsubaki. Give Lucy some time to get ready and she can meet up with us in the dining hall for breakfast. Ok?" A female Pyroar spoke from behind Cosmo.

Pouting, the Dragon reluctantly let go of my arm and made way for the door. "Fine...See you at breakfast, Lucy!'

Waving, the slimy Dragon Type closed the door behind her, leaving me to stand alone in the dimly lit room.

Sighing, I slowly shook my head, wondering just how on Earth she gets all that energy. After brushing my fur with a comb I brought from home, I grabbed my Explorers Badge and pack and walked into the bustling dining hall.

After grabbing a plate of sweet smelling berries, I sat down at a table with Tsubaki and the other Pokemon from this morning.

"Good morning!" Tsubaki beamed, picking up a Chesto berry and popping it into her open mouth.

"Good morning." I nodded, glancing at the Sylveon and Pyroar in front of me.

"Oh! Lucy, these are my teammates! This is Cosmo and Sarabi! We're Team Kalos!" She introduced the two.

The other two members of Team Kalos nodded in greeting. "Hello, Lucy. It's a pleasure to meet you." The Pyroar and Sylveon said.

"It's a pleasure to meet you too." I dipped my head, popping a Pecha berry into my mouth.

Suddenly during our peaceful meal, I felt a glare being sent my way. Looking up, I scanned my eyes around the room uncertainly, only to find myself gazing back at the Shiny Zoroark. He was sitting in a corner by himself, not even bothering to mingle with the other Pokemon.

I quickly looked down, my appetite suddenly gone as Sly's piercing yellow eyes continued to melt away my once cheerful mood.

Cosmo was the first to notice my sudden change in behaviour. "Hey, what's wrong Lucy?"

Tsubaki and Sarabi looked up from their meal in surprise as I shuffled uncomfortably in my seat. "...Sly's here…" I flinched as I tuned into his aura. It wasn't as furious as before, but he was certainly angry.

"Hm? Where?" Team Kalos started to search around the room themselves when the eyes and angry aura vanished from the room.

"He's gone…" I let out a shaky breath.

"Really? How can you tell?" The three teammates cast questioning glances at

me.

"I can sense his aura. It left the room."

"Oh, that's right! I forgot Lucario can sense auras! Can you see ours, too?" Sarabi exclaimed.

"Only if I wanted to. We normally try and refrain from using our ability outside of battle. It's rather rude to view a Pokemon's aura without their permission." I explained to them.

"Oh...but you just looked at Sly's aura didn't you? So aren't you being rude?"

My face heated up from embarrassment. "T-that's a bit different...true, we may not be in battle, but with his attitude towards me, it appears he still views me as an opponent. Although I doubt he'll attack me, I feel a bit safer being able to look at his aura. At least until he warms up to me anyways…"

"Awww, it'll be ok Lucy! I'm sure Sly will get over it eventually." She pat my back reassuredly.

"Well, in any case, we should probably get going. If we don't leave soon then everyone else will get the good missions." Sarabi nodded, getting up from her seat.

"Oh, alright. Well, good luck on your mission with Sly, Lucy." Cosmo waved goodbye, following Sarabi out of the dining hall.

After the two had left, I sighed. This wasn't going to go well was it?

"What's wrong, Lucy? Are you nervous?" Tsubaki asked, getting ready to follow her teammates.

"A little...I'm just worried about what will happen with Sly." I furrowed my eyebrows.

"It'll be ok, Lucy. I'm sure nothing bad will happen. Everything'll be fine." She gave me a hug. "We should get going now, it's not good to keep our teammates waiting."

Hesitantly, I followed Tsubaki out of the dining hall and into the request room. It wasn't hard to locate Sly while I kept a check on his aura. He was leaning against the far wall, a bored expression on his face while Miss Blair was talking to him.

Walking their way, Sly roamed his gaze around the room, his aura reflecting extreme irritation once he spotted me. At least he didn't seem angry…

"Ah, good morning, Lucy! I hope you slept well. We've got your mission already picked." The Braixen smiled.

"Good morning, Miss Blair! I slept very well, thank you. What mission is it?" I dipped my head in greeting to the two.

Miss Blair held up a piece of paper in her paw, skimming over it. "You two will be going to Frozen Forest to apprehend an Outlaw known as Scar. He's a Luxray wanted for thievery and you can identify him by the scar located over his left eye, hence the name "Scar" since nobody knows his real name." She finished.

He was named Scar because of the scar on his eye? How creative…

"Oh, and the reward for successfully capturing him is 2000 Poke. Now Lucy, I'd like to talk to you for a moment. Sly, you may go wait outside for her." Miss Blair waited for the Zoroark to move.

Sly groaned and rolled his eyes, walking towards the entrance. "Whatever."

"What do you need, Miss Blair?" I stared at her quizzically.

"I just wanted to tell you that if Sly does anything at all to you while on your missions, come let me know. I'm sure Guildmaster Darian would be more than willing to help set him straight. It's not easy being in a team with him." She placed one of her small paws on my arm, concern lacing her eyes.

"...Ok. I'll tell you if anything happens."

"Alright, good! Now get going, Frozen Forest is normally a 5 day trip from here, but since this assignment is for an Outlaw, you'll need to get there even quicker. Go find Jafar the Alakazam, he'll be able to teleport you there in no time." She ushered me out.

Surprisingly, Sly was actually waiting outside the gate. "Let me guess, she told you to snitch on me if I do anything bad, right?" He sneered, twirling a sunflower in his paw.

"She wants us to go find Jafar so he can teleport us to Frozen Forest." I stated, neither confirming nor denying his question.

"No shit. That's the only way we'd get there in time. If we traveled by foot then he'd be long gone by the time we made it to the entrance." Sly huffed, glaring as he tossed the sunflower to the side. "Now let's go, we're wasting time."

"You know, I'm actually surprised you waited for me." I said, gazing at the scenery as I followed Sly through the bustling Daylight Square.

"It's not like I wanted to." He spat, clearly annoyed with me.

"Why not?" I was feeling quite bold all of a sudden. This morning I was frightened, and now I'm actually trying to make him mad. Although I guess that's because I don't like sitting in silence.

"You know damn well why! Now shut up!" The Zoroark turned to snarl at me, his now furious aura lashing out in great wisps.

I took a step back, mouth opening and closing without a sound, surprised at the fury of it. I knew he would be angry, but I didn't count on him being THIS furious.

When he saw that I wasn't going to say anything, Sly huffed and turned back around, continuing to walk ahead. After a few seconds, I regained my composure and caught up to him as he entered a strange purple tent.

"Ah, hello Sly. Are you and your friend ready to set off to Frozen Forest?" An Alakazam, presumably Jafar, asked.

Sly grunted in response and handed the Psychic Type a few coins, most likely payment for his services.

Without another word, Jafar nodded his head and we were suddenly transported to a world of white. Needless to say, it was freezing. I had never experienced temperatures like this, even in winter it was always sunny and warm at the village.

Involuntarily, I sneezed and shivered, clutching at myself in order to keep in what warmth I could.

"What? Catching a cold are we?" Sly sneered, seemingly unfazed by the chilly weather.

"Oh sh-shut up...I-I-I've never b-been in co-cold weather before…" I was having trouble keeping my teeth from chattering together.

"Never?" He raised an eyebrow.

I shook my head furiously, too cold to properly answer.

Snickering, Sly dug around in his bag and tossed something my way. "You better be glad I packed some Aspear berries."

Caught by surprise, I barely managed to catch the small yellow berry. As soon as my chattering teeth managed to pierce the hard peel, warm, sour juice poured out of it and into my system. The liquid slowly made its way through my body and in no time at all I was feeling warm from head to toe.

"That feels so much better! Thank you, Sly!" I grinned at him, sincerely thankful.

He stared at me for a few seconds, his expression unreadable. "...whatever…" Turning towards the entrance, he shouted to me as he began walking forward. "Now hurry up, we don't want to lose Scar!"

The floors of Frozen Forest were unnaturally quiet, at least from my standpoint. "Does this seem...weird to you?" I glanced around the current floor we were on cautiously.

"What?"

"It's so quiet, we haven't come across any of the native Pokemon here, and...I can't sense any auras except for yours."

That stopped him in his tracks. "What do you mean you can't sense any auras?"

"Exactly what it sounds like. I haven't detected a single living thing since coming here."

Sly took a defensive stance. "Something's up then. Scar's definitely gotta be here somewhere."

Slowly we crept forward, still finding no life until we reached the end of the 20th floor where I detected an unsettling presence. "Sly...there's something on the next floor."

"Can you tell what it is?" He whispered as we neared our exit.

"No...but it's weird. The aura...it feels distorted and strange. It doesn't feel..._natural_." I shivered.

Sly threw a sideways glance my way and crept ever so slowly forward. I followed him, making sure to keep as quiet as possible.

"Where is he?" Sly asked as we made it to the beginning room of the current floor.

"...He's in the room to the left of us."

Painful howls could be heard as we neared closer and closer to our destination. Whether it was from Scar or some other Pokemon though was beyond us.

I had mentally prepared myself for all sorts of scenarios my paranoid mind could think of, but I was completely caught off guard at the sight before us. Several of the local Ice Types lay amid the room in a sea of blood, their eyes devoid of any life on their horror stricken faces. And in the center of that room stood a black as night Luxray with shining blood red eyes, a scar over the left one.

His aura however, is what disturbed me the most. It hung out in great wisps, lashing out in an aggressive turmoil. Several negative emotions hung around it like a thick, eternal fog. Some of them being bloodlust, greed, madness, and great anger. It was like a shadow had possessed it, no light coming from it at all.

_What is this horrible creature?_


	7. Chapter 7: A Bad Situation

**People have been requesting for an update, so here it is! I'm sorry if I don't update very often, but I am in college and it's the not the most easiest thing. Especially since I don't normally have too much free time and midterms are coming up, so I wouldn't expect another one to come too soon. I do want to thank everyone for the support you've shown with this story though. It does mean a lot, and seeing people enjoy this really makes me quite happy. But anyhow, I hope y'all enjoy this chapter! Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon**

**Chapter 7: A Bad Situation**

_What is this horrible creature? _

"H-his aura…" It frightened me. It wasn't right...it wasn't natural…

Sly cast an annoyed glare my way. "All these Pokemon murdered and you're worried about his aura?"

"Of course I'm worried about the Pokemon! But you can't see his aura like I can!" I shook my head furiously, trying to dispel the frightening thoughts away.

"Well his aura isn't important right now! Now snap out of it so we can get this over with!' He whispered harshly, turning to glare at the unnatural Luxray.

Before I could say anything else, Sly opened his maw and fired an Extrasensory. The gold and rainbow colored beam hitting the Luxray dead in the face. Only...it didn't do anything. It was completely unfazed by the attack.

"What?" Sly gaped, Scar's deadly red eyes focusing on us.

The Luxray let out a screeching howl and sprinted towards us, cloaking itself in a strange dark purple electricity. We leaped out of the way from the oncoming Wild Charge and I watched as Sly ineffectively used Night Slash as the move did little damage.

"Dammit, snap out of it already! Are you going to help or not?" He barked at me.

"Oh, um, y-yeah." Scar proceeded to ram into the wall and hoping to subdue him quickly, I brought my paw up and used Psychic. Much like Sly's Extrasensory though, it failed to work.

Our Psychic moves did nothing to this creature and Sly's Night Slash did little to faze the beast. Am I missing something? "Sly, Psychic isn't working! Are Luxray normally Dark Types?"

The Zoroark looked at me like I was crazy. "Are you stupid? Luxray are pure Electric Types. You're just not strong enough to use a move like that."

"Oh really? And I suppose you want to give me an explanation as to why your Extrasensory didn't work?" I snapped.

"Well fine then!" If you're so smart, then try using a Fighting move on it!" He snapped back.

"Fine!" I rushed towards the recovering Luxray, preparing to strike with a Force Palm.

I only encountered one problem though. My fist went right through him as if he was some ghostly apparition. I gasped in surprise as my balance was disrupted and I stumbled through the Luxray, sprawling out into the cold snow.

A menacing growl sounded above me and I quickly flipped onto my back, bringing my left arm up just in time to avoid being clawed in the face by the bloodthirsty Luxray.

His claws raked across my arm, producing deep ragged cuts along it. I hissed in pain from the impact and Scar's fangs became cloaked in a dark purple fire. Before he could bite me though, I kicked him hard in the gut and sent him flying.

Sly finally stepped in and encased him in a shroud of fire, cutting off the stream a few seconds later. The Luxray's pure black fur was not charred in some places, smoke rising from his body.

I stood up, blood streaming from my new wound, wincing as the pain increased to an agonizing pain as I put my weight on it.

Sly looked at the wound from where he was standing. "Great. Now I'm probably gonna get blamed for this."

"Oh chill. How were we supposed to know I was gonna faze through him?" I huffed and rolled my eyes.

"Fazed? Looks more like you missed." He snorted, dodging Scar as he went for another Wild Charge.

"I didn't miss, my fist passed right through him as he was a Ghost type. Now if you don't believe me then why don't you use Focus Blast on him?" I was beginning to grow extremely irritated at my partner.

He rolled his eyes in answer. "Whatever. I'll trust what you say. Now let's get this over with so we can patch up your arm."

Without another word I turned towards our opponent and put my paws together, bringing them apart as a bone composed of light green energy formed between them. Scar charged at me and as he came close enough, I hit him upside the head with a well placed swing using Bone Rush.

Scar let out an ear piercing wail as the super effective hit made contact and proceeded to slam into Sly as he went sailing.

My teammate let out an infuriated growl. "You couldn't have sent him in a different direction?"

"It's not like I intended for it to happen. Besides, you should have been watching where you were going." I snickered, watching the Zoroark as he shoved Scar's heavy body off of him.

"I don't have time for this. Now knock him out with another Bone Rush so we can end this." His eyes began to glow a bright green and several vines snaked up out of the snow, tying up around Scar's feet and immobilizing him.

The strange Luxray began to thrash about, trying to escape from his bonds. Before he escaped I quickly formed another Bone Rush and knocked him out. As I gazed upon the fallen Luxray, I tuned into his aura once more. Generally when a Pokemon is unconscious, their auras take on a much calmer state. However, this was certainly not the case this time as Scar's aura was just as chaotic as it had been when he was awake.

Watching Sly take out a rope from the inside of his explorers bag, I slowly stepped up and used Force Palm on the unconscious Pokemon, watching as his form wavered and my paw pass right through him.

"What the hell?" The Zoroark looked on in confusion as I brought my fist back out, Scar's body returning to a solid state.

"Told you." I simply answered, not having an explanation for the strange occurrence either.

"Well don't leave me in the dark! What the hell's wrong with him?" He glared at me.

"How the hell should I know? I've never seen anything like this!" I glared back.

"You're the aura seer, you tell me!"

"You can't tell what a Pokemon is simply by looking at their aura. The aura is a Pokemon's life energy. The only things I can tell are their state of health, mind, and emotions. That's it, nothing else! What I CAN tell you is that there is definitely something wrong with Scar. No aura should like his did!" I yelled angrily. I didn't care if I woke the Luxray up at this point, I'd just hit with another Bone Rush.

"Then what is so "wrong" with his aura?" Sly's own aura was getting as angry as I felt.

"It's not natural! Even the cruelest Pokemon alive has at least SOME light coming from their aura. But not his, his was the darkest shades of black and purple you could possibly imagine. It had the most negative emotions you can feel! They were so strong and angry, they were hanging around him like a thick fog! So thick that not even a Bisharp's blades could cut it! No aura like this should even exist! In fact, this Luxray shouldn't even exist! This isn't NATURAL! Not in the least bit! That's what's "wrong", Sly!" I screamed, letting my temper and stress get the best of me before walking off angrily towards the exit.

I was still incredibly angry once I reached the beginning entrance of Frozen Forest, and frankly I wanted to just keep walking. But unfortunately I didn't know the way back to Daylight Square and therefore had to wait on my infuriating partner to show the way.

Soon enough though, he came out dragging Scar behind him. "Did you finally stop bleeding?" He cast a sideways glance.

I looked down in half anger, half surprise. The bleeding had actually stopped, but only because the wound had frozen over from the intense cold. Looking at it, I suddenly began to feel drained and I wobbled unsteadily.

Sly moved to grab my arm, but I pushed it away. "Don't…"

"I don't care if you're still mad at me. The blood will unfreeze eventually and you'll start losing more. At this rate you'll bleed to death before we make it back to the Guild." He rolled his eyes.

"Well then why not just let me die? With me out of the way you'll have the team all to yourself again like we all know you want!"

His eyes turned into angry slits. "Now hold on here! I may not want you here, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna let you die on me if I can help it. My job is to rescue Pokemon in need, including Guild members. So shut up and give me your arm!"

After a bit of effort, Sly finally got my arm bandaged up. He actually had to use a few small Flamethrowers (well, more like Embers but Zoroark can't learn that) in order to melt the blood that had frozen over in order for him to properly wrap it up.

Our journey back home was mostly filled with silence, the only talk coming from Sly whenever he needed to change the bandages and the times when Scar awoke, only to be knocked out by one or two attacks from us. It wouldn't be good to have him awake, not knowing the extent of his powers it would be best to keep him asleep as much as possible.

On our fifth day of traveling, we finally made it back to Daylight Square much to my relief. The square was as bustling as ever, a few onlookers gazing to watch us pass while we dragged our captured outlaw behind us.

A few minutes later, we entered the Guild and came upon the request room. "Where's Darian?" Sly barked at the approaching Miss Blair.

"Don't yell at me, but I'm glad you're both back. Guildmaster Darian is in his office. Why do you need to see him?" The Braixen raised an eyebrow at the fox's rude behavior, although she must be pretty used to it by now.

"Ask her." He huffed and dropped the Luxray's rope, leaving him with me and Miss Blair while he walked to the Guildmaster's office.

"Lucy? What's going on?" She asked, concern and hesitation lacing her tone.

"Um…" I bit my lip and shifted around uncomfortably. "I'd rather explain it with the Guildmaster present."

The fox furrowed her eyebrows, but she didn't pester me for details. She did, however, notice my bandaged arm. "What happened to you?"

"Oh. Scar attacked me. Sly was able to take care of it though." I waved it off, trying not to press into the matter as it dealt with Scar's unusual biology.

Thankfully enough, Sly arrived with Darian and all eyes were on me. Sighing as I evidently had to be the one to explain things, I grudgingly recounted our time with Scar. As I told about his strange aura and unnatural biology (for a Luxray anyways), both Darian and Miss Blair became increasingly alarmed.

"Darian! You don't think this is-" She was cut off, gasping as she gazed at the Sawsbuck with wide eyes.

"Blair, go fetch Team Eon!" He barked. Darian was tense as the Braixen scrambled to get the mentioned team.

"What's going on?" Sly asked, clearly angry to be out of the loop.

The Guildmaster ignored us, however, as he continued to stare at the unconscious form of Scar with an intense look.

Blair soon returned, a Glaceon, Leafeon, and Espeon following close behind. "Sir, I've brought Team Eon."

"Good. Now, take Team Eon with you and head to Quicksand Pass. Find Sid in the Ancient Ruins to the north of it and bring him here!" He instructed the four.

Without questions asked Team Eon followed Miss Blair out of the Guild, although judging from their expressions they were quite confused with the current situation.

"Darian! Are you gonna explain what's going on or what?" Sly yelled, grabbing the attention of a few members who were loitering about.

The Sawsbuck sighed, although his tension didn't cease. "Everything will be explained once those four come back with Sid. Just know that the situation is very worrying...and very bad."


	8. Chapter 8: A Day Out

**I'M SO SORRY! I missed the one year anniversary that the story's been up and just I'm really really really really really sorry it took me almost two months to update! Please forgive me *Goodra sad face as tears come to her eyes* I'll try to get the next chapter up sooner! College has just been so busy lately Dx Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon **

**Chapter 8: A Day Out**

The Sawsbuck sighed, although his tension didn't cease. "Everything will be explained once those four come back with Sid. Just know that the situation is very worrying...and very bad.

Without another word, Darian left us...well, me...confused and worried. My partner just gave an irritated sigh and rolled his eyes. "I'm gonna go fetch Officer Arcanine. Make sure Scar doesn't escape."

I just nodded absentmindedly, wondering whom Sid was and what he had to do with our current predicament. Darian's reaction had been rather alarming for me and needless to say I was becoming quite stressed. I knew the Luxray was a problem to worry about, but...was there something even worse than I could imagine?

~Sly~

"I'm going to go fetch Officer Arcanine. Make sure Scar doesn't escape." I told the Lucario as I turned to leave. She simply nodded, appearing to be lost in thought.

The Arcanine Patrol was on the other side of the square, a good ten minutes away from the Guild. Normally we would bring Outlaws straight to the police, but given Scar's...circumstances...we would need to hold onto him for a while.

Walking to the headquarters, my mind strayed back to Frozen Forest, playing a certain scene over and over again. _"Well then why not just let me die? With me out of the way you'll have the Team all to yourself again like we all know you want!" _I grit my teeth as her unusual angry and bitter blue eyes flashed through my mind. She didn't understand why I acted the way I did. In fact, nobody except Darian knew. And it would stay that way...it would stay that way until I finally found _him._

~Lucy~

"Lucy!" I jumped up, startled from my thoughts as a familiar voice called out to me.

I turned to see the happy-go-lucky Dragon making her way towards me from one of the many request boards. "How was your mission?" She asked with excited eyes.

"Um…" I looked down at Scar, not entirely sure on what to tell her.

She followed my gaze downward. "Oh! You caught an outlaw! That's fantastic!" She exclaimed, her eyes bright.

"Yea…" I continued to look down at his unconscious form, hoping Sly would come back with Officer Arcanine soon.

"Well, tell me about it! What happened?" She asked, her eyes gleaming with curiosity.

Although unwillingly, I proceeded to explain about what happened during mine and Sly's mission. I knew that if I didn't tell her what took place, she'd constantly ask me about it judging from how excited she was. I did leave out the parts about the argument I had with Sly, though. I didn't want her to worry too much and cause more drama with my partner than was needed.

After finishing my story, Tsubaki looked down at Scar with surprise and slight fear. "Have you told Guildmaster Darian about this?"

"Yes. He seems to know what's wrong with Scar, but he won't tell us just yet. He sent Miss Blair and Team Eon to go find someone named 'Sid'."

"Well...I guess it won't do us any good to continue thinking about it. We'll just have to wait until they come back with Sid. Now, we should go out to Nurse Audino's and get your arm looked at." She furrowed her eyebrows worriedly as she looked between the fallen Luxray and my bandaged arm.

"I can't right now. Sly told me to wait with Scar while he went and got Officer Arcanine."

"Well he better hurry up, then. Sly may have stopped the bleeding and patched you up, but he's not exactly a medical genius." The Goodra frowned.

Some odd minutes later though, Sly returned with a majestic looking Arcanine in tow.

"Ah, you must be Sly's partner! Sly, you've got a looker on your paws." He winked at us, mischief dancing in his purple eyes.

I felt my face heat up and the Zoroark opened his mouth in surprise, a light red brushing his cheeks.

The mischievous Arcanine let out barking laugh. "Haha, I'm just messin with ya! Don't pay me no mind, missy. I always tease him like this. It gets him every time! But now that I've had my fun, I should introduce myself. My name is Argos, but on the job folks just refer to me and my comrades as Officer Arcanine. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"O-oh um, I'm Lucy. It's a pleasure to meet you too." I smiled nervously at him. I never would have expected an officer to be this playful.

"Well, now that the introductions are over with, Sly has informed me of the situation and that y'all need to keep ahold of our Outlaw here for a few more days. That being said, we'll put him in a cell located at the basement of the Guild and I'll be on guard while he's here."

"We have a cell?" My ears perked up in surprise, they hadn't shown me that on the Guild tour. I knew this was a castle, but I didn't even think that Darian had kept the old cell blocks that most have.

"Yes ma'am! The Guildmaster decided it would be beneficial to leave the old cells as they were. It comes in mighty handy plenty of times when our own cells back at headquarters have filled up." Argos nodded with a bright smile.

After Argos explained that to me, Sly took hold of the rope that was still tied around Scar and started dragging him to a staircase that I hadn't noticed till now.

We followed him down and into a musty smelling chamber filled with old prison cells. The upper floors of the Guild were nice and clean, but it was evident that the basement received little treatment.

None of the cells seemed to be in use right now and Sly tossed the Outlaw into the nearest one, locking the door once he was finished.

"Alright, now that that's done, I need to give you two your payment for capturing the criminal." Argos tugged on his messenger bag and pulled out 2000 poke, dividing it equally between the two of us.

"Great! Now that you're done, we can take you to Nurse Audino's!" Tsubaki exclaimed happily.

The Goodra's outburst gained Sly's attention. "Nurse Audino? I've already taken care of her arm."

"Maybe, but we should still get it looked at by a professional. After all, it could get infected without the proper medicine." She told the Shiny fox.

He only grunted and rolled his eyes. "Whatever. I'm going into town to buy more supplies. See ya, Argos." With that the Zoroark left us, silently ascending the stairs into the upper floor of the Guild.

Argos settled down on the cold stone floor and let out a small yawn. "Alright you two. I'll keep watch on the Outlaw, y'all go take care of your business."

"Ok. Bye, Argos!" We left him and proceeded to head on into Daylight Square.

To my surprise, it was still broad daylight outside. I thought we had been inside the Guild much longer than what it had actually been. Nurse Audino's office was located in the middle of the square and took us about five minutes to reach the pink and white tent.

"Hello, Nurse Audino!" My companion called out to an Audino who was sitting outside bathing in the warm sunlight.

She opened her eyes in surprise and a smile graced her pretty face. "Oh, hello Tsubaki! What brings you here? Did you get injured again?"

"No, ma'am! We were hoping you could look at my friend's arm. She got injured during her mission and even though her partner patched it up, I thought I'd bring her here to make sure her arm is ok." She gestured to my bandaged arm.

"Oh dear! Well let's have a look shall we? Come inside and I'll take a look at it!" She dusted herself off and walked inside the tent.

We followed her inside and she instructed me to sit on a chair near the left side of the structure. It looked like a normal doctors office. Filled with lots of berries and plants for medical uses, a few straw beds for patients who were too sick or injured to leave without constant medical attention, and a few other supplies.

Nurse Audino began to unwrap the bandage only to find a gnarly looking half healed wound in the shape of claw marks. "Oh dear, well it's a good thing you came. How long have you had this wound?"

"Five days."

"Hm…" She frowned. "Without having the proper treatment for that long, I'm afraid it won't be able to completely heal. You'll be left with a scar...and what a shame too. Your fur is so pretty."

My ears drooped from her words. I should have expected it, but the fact I'd always have this rough and ugly looking wound on my arm dropped my mood from ten to zero. My family had always praised me for my fur. It was always kept well groomed and clean and never had any sort of blemish or wound. I guess I could live with it though. My life wouldn't end if I had to deal with this scar for the rest of my life.

"It's fine." I told her. If my mother found out about this, she would be furious. She always believed the most important thing was to keep yourself in tip top shape. She would bite my head off if she found this on me.

Nurse Audino nodded with approval and searched for the proper berries and herbs needed to heal my wound. It didn't take too long and when she finished applying everything, she finished it up with a relaxing Heal Pulse.

"Alright, all finished! I'm sorry I can't heal it completely, though." She sent an apologetic smile.

"Thank you! And it's fine!" I smiled back and handed her a handful of poke. After goodbyes, we left and started to wander about the square.

"Where should we go next?" I asked Tsubaki. This was the first time I'd actually had to explore Daylight Square. I had no idea what all there was to do here.

"Hm...why don't we go shopping? Truthfully I could use some more supplies, and it would be a good idea for you to get some too. After we're done we should go to Miltank's Dairy, Miss Whitney makes the best ice cream around!" She finally decided.

**Continued….**

**Ok, I'm sorry for this, but I'll have to break this into two different chapters. It'd be too long for just one chapter and I'm also sorry nothing much happened in this. I had hoped to get more story progression in this chapter, but it doesn't look like it happened :/ We did get to get a peek inside Sly's thoughts however, so that's a plus in my books~ I'll try to get the next chapter up soon though!**


	9. Chapter 9: Lucina Alfaro

**So..long time no see :'D I know it's been a while, and I give y'all permission to beat me to a bloody pulp for not uploading in so long. Thing is, during the summer, I have no internet save for maybe a few days once every couple of weeks and then once the new school year started, college has kept me extremely busy. Over the last couple days I finally wrote the last 1000 or so words for this chapter. Even though it took so long for this chapter, I haven't been neglecting the entire story as I have written parts of some later chapters. More specifically my favorite parts of this story so far ;) But with that, I hope y'all enjoy this chapter and I don't own Pokemon**

**Chapter 9: Lucina Alfaro**

"...After we're done, we should go to Miltank's Dairy! Miss Whitney makes the best ice cream around!" She finally decided.

I agreed with her and we set off. I really could use some supplies. After all, it wouldn't be fair to Sly if he was the only one who contributed to the equipment.

After walking a short way, we came across a place labeled 'Raichu's Market' that was run by none other than two Raichu. Their names were Proton and Fate and were brother and sister. They sold multitudes of berries, herbs, medical supplies including bandages and gauze, rope, and so much more. By the time I had finished gathering what I need and stuffing them into my bag, a third of the poke I received from Argos had been depleted.

Tsubaki started to lead the way to Miltank's Dairy when I noticed a colorful little shop a few feet from it. Titled 'Leavanny's Boutique', Pokemon were coming in and out, each wearing some kind of bandanna, scarf, or other sort clothing or accessories. While I never cared too much for fancy jewels or clothing, I was interested to see what they had. Maybe I could even find something to cover up my scar for the time being.

"Hey, Tsubaki? Can we look around in there real quick?" I pointed to the little shop.

"Hm?" Her eyes traveled to where I was pointing and she smiled. "Sure! Emil always has beautiful accessories! I've been meaning to look for a new scarf too, so this is perfect!"

With that, we entered the green, yellow, and blue tent to be met with an attractive Leavanny. "Welcome to Leavanny's Boutique! My name is Emil and I'm the owner of this establishment! Please feel free to look around and notify me if you find anything that interests you!" He greeted us with a bright smile and promptly left to help another customer.

"Is there anything particular you'd like to look at?" The Goodra asked.

I shook my head. "No, not really."

With that, Tsubaki left to browse through the various scarves and I was left to my own devices. I searched through the different items, but so far nothing really caught my interest. I was about to give up when I spotted an assortment of different colored bandanas.

They were in a wide variety of colors. They ranged from having one to multiple colors with various color combinations and designs. I was about to pick up a plain, dark purple bandanna when I noticed a rather unique one. The bandana was primarily black with blue edges and small red intricate designs scattered across the surface. My paw tips ghosted over the fabric and marveled at the silky smooth texture. It was beautiful, but that's not what drew me to it. I felt somehow drawn to the piece of cloth. Gently picking it up, I swiveled my head around before finally spotting the Leavanny finishing up a transaction with my companion.

"Oh! Are you finished?" She asked as I approached. A new scarf sat at the base of her neck. Most of it was a bright, vibrant, scarlet red and slowly changed to sunset orange which changed to a daffodil yellow towards the ends. It was very pretty.

After I nodding towards her, I gave Emil 250 poke for the item and we exited the establishment.

I tried tying the bandana on over my scars, but it turned out to be annoyingly impossible. "Tsubaki, can you help me put this on?" I turned to the Goodra.

"Sure thing!" She giggled at my annoyance and carefully tied the piece of silk on my arm.

I examined it, turning my arm which way and that. "Thank you." I smiled, satisfied with the way it looked.

We continued on, passing a few other shops along the way until we made it to Miltank's Dairy. The tent was colored brown and cream with pictures of milk bottles and ice cream decorating it. Walking in, there were multiple tables scattered throughout the tent, at least half of them were filled with various Pokemon. Toward the back, standing behind a counter stood a lone Miltank as she dealt with a line of customers.

A few minutes later, we were at the front of the counter. "Hello, darlins. Welcome to Miltank's Dairy! My name is Whitney, what can I get for ya?" She smiled warmly at us.

"Hello, Miss Whitney! May I have a Pecha Berry Sundae with melted Sweet Hearts on top, please?"

"Sure thing, sweetie! That'll be 100 poke. Now, what can I get for you?" She asked sweetly as Tsubaki handed her the coins.

While we were waiting, Tsubaki told me what all could be ordered here, along with all the various combinations, so I had already planned out mine. "May I have a Kasib Berry Sundae with Leppa Berry shavings?"

"Of course, dear! That'll be 150 poke!" I handed her the small pile of coins and she directed us to sit down at one of the many tables while she fixed our orders.

We sat at a table near the far end of the tent where we sat a little far off from the rest. "Kasib and Leppa, huh? That's unusual." My companion laughed.

I stared at her, confused. "It is?" It didn't seem unusual, at least to me that is.

"Well, I don't know too many Pokemon who'd want such a spicy berry in their ice cream." She continued to chuckle.

"Oh." I tilted my head to the side, not entirely sure why she found that so funny. I guess she was right in a way though. Ice Cream was a very sweet, frozen treat and putting Kasib Berries in it made it even sweeter. Leppa Berries on the other hand were incredibly spicy, something that you don't normally put in something such as this. I loved the combined flavors of the two, however. It made my mouth water; it was my favorite.

After the Goodra had finished with her little laughing bout, we spent the rest of the wait talking about various missions that Exploration Teams went on. Besides the ones that Tsubaki had already told me about, there were also missions where Teams went on to explore uncharted areas; Mystery Dungeons or various other places that hadn't been discovered yet. It honestly sounded quite thrilling, but it had a sense of danger as well. Having not been explored before, nobody knew what what to expect in these places. Often times there would be extremely powerful Pokemon at the end, other times there would be lethal traps set up through them. It was always a gamble and were reserved for Hyper Rank Exploration Teams or higher. Team Delusion was currently Diamond Rank, but even if Sly had met the required conditions sooner, now that I had been added onto to the team, the Guildmaster would never let Sly take on those kinds of jobs until I was more experienced.

The friendly Miltank soon came with our treats and we slowly and silently ate. It wasn't until halfway through our meal that I looked down at my explorer badge and noticed a peculiar sight: the small imitation sapphire was beginning to glow.

"Um...Tsubaki? Why is my badge glowing?" I glanced at her curiously.

Surprised, she pulled out her own. "Oh! I was supposed to tell you about that! The gems in our badges glow when something important is happening at the Guild. Usually it's an announcement about especially dangerous outlaws or special missions that take the utmost priority."

"Oh.." I marveled at the now glowing badge as I turned it over in my paws.

"Yep! We should get going then, don't want to keep the Guildmaster waiting~" Tsubaki practically sang as she all but dragged me out of the tent.

By the time we had arrived, the request room had been almost jam packed. Up at the front of the crowd as Darian and Miss Blair...and standing beside them was an all too familiar Lucario.

My mother was here and I could sense the auras of my grandfather and a few of the guards. I wanted to run, but it was too late. More Pokemon had appeared behind us and I was effectively trapped. I was dead, there was no way I could just lay low, and they were here to report me missing. Considering the circumstances, I already knew what they were here for.

"Hey, Lucy. Do you know that Lucario? She looks a lot like you." Tsubaki looked between the queen and myself.

Shit….I literally couldn't lie to her in this situation. She'd find out within the next few minutes anyways. Dammit! Why did I have to have the same features as them? Couldn't genetics have made me look like a normal Lucario like my grandmother? Most of the royal family, aside from anyone who was married into it, had bright blue eyes and black, spiked markings on the tips of our ears (like that of a Pikachu). These were traits inherited from my father's side generations ago and unfortunately genetics chose to make them the dominant traits.

Before I could start, however, Darian stood atop the raised platform and stomped his hoof twice. The entire room became silent in a heartbeat as his proud and noble figure loomed over us. "Guild members, I have called you for a special request. With me today is Queen Aurora, one of the rulers alongside King Darnell of one of the many Lucario tribes to the south of Daylight Square who are currently looking for their missing daughter! Now, I will give the floor to Queen Aurora as she will discuss the details of this mission and I expect each of you to behave as expected of you." With that, he gave the crowd a meaningful look and stepped down from the platform.

Full of arrogance and royal upbringing, my mother ascended the stairs to stand above us, looking smug and disdainful as always. She cleared her throat and began speaking, ice dripping from every word. "As your...guildmaster...has stated, our daughter, the eldest princess and next in line to the throne, has gone missing. As we had just finished finding her a mate and was set to marry last week, King Darnell has begun discussions with other royalty in our vicinity in case any of them had anything to do with her disappearance. While he is now visiting another tribe of Lucario, I have come to seek help from your guild. Our daughter's name is Lucina Alfaro, otherwise called "Lucy". She is a Lucario of normal stature, with bright blue eyes and black markings on the tips of her ears, not easy to miss at all. However...I now see that a search will be unnecessary." She ended as two pairs of paws grabbed me from behind and forced me onto the platform beside mother where she promptly shoved a Gracidea flower onto my head.

"Behold, Princess Lucina Alfaro!" She gestured to the crowd of confused and shocked Pokemon.

I brought my head down in shame, unable to meet the eyes of my fellow guild members, especially those of Tsubaki, Gale, and Drax as their auras displayed that of sadness, confusion, and a hint of betrayal.

"Now...for one last order of business." She swiped my badge from the strap of my bag and held it for all to see, her eyes ablaze with anger. "How dare you lie to me! Did you not tell me that there were no Lucario located in this vicinity? Let alone at this establishment?"

"Yes, I am aware of what I said." Darian gazed at my mother calmly, a first I had seen anyone act toward her.

"Why? Why did you try to keep her from us, you oaf?!" She practically snarled at him.

Miss Blair growled from her place beside Darian, taking her wand from her tail and pointing it at Aurora. "You will respect our Guildmaster while you are here! If you cannot do that, then I suggest you leave at once!" A bright orange and red flame appeared on the tip of her wand.

"Do not speak to me you draggle-tailed guttersnipe! My business is not with you!" The two guards who grabbed me now stood in front of mother, Bone Rushes at the ready in case Miss Blair decided to attack.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Darian finally shouted, effectively bringing the room to a dead silence. Not even mother dared to speak back.

"I did not tell you that Lucy was here because it is not our decision to force her into a life she does not want. While I do not agree with running away, I venture that it was the only way she would be able to freely live her life. She has the right to do as she pleases, and nobody can tell her otherwise. Lucy may have had a duty to your people, but it does not rule over her life. She is free to make her own decisions, and if that is to forfeit her place as Queen, then so be it."

"Duty? And what would you know of duty?" She scoffed, now mocking the Sawsbuck.

"Mother! That's enough!" I finally snapped.

I was embarrassed, ashamed, and extremely pissed off. I'd had it. Darian was right. I can make my own decisions about my own life, and I'll be damned if I just let mother take me back to that nightmare. Being a princess might be ok for some people, but I hated it. I wanted to be an explorer, and that's exactly what I was gonna do!

"Excuse you?" The older Lucario stuttered in surprise. I had never talked back to anyone, let alone her.

"You need to leave." I glared at her. "Right now."

Of course, mother just giving up and leaving now would be too easy. She always had to make a spectacle out of everything.

"How dare you talk back to your mother! You are coming with me, whether you like it or not, and you will marrying Prince Nexus!" I could see the fury in her expression.

"But I don't want to marry Nexus! I don't want to be Queen! I don't want any of this! I just want to be Lucy, I want to help other Pokemon, and travel, and make new friends. Why can't you understand that?"

Would I ever be able to convince her to let me stay, or would I be doomed to go back to a life I didn't even want?

~Sly~

My brow raised as my annoying partner was brought to the platform. She was a princess? She looked so ashamed standing up there, whether it be from the embarrassment that was her mother, or the fact that she hid her identity from her friends. Or it could be both, although I didn't really care to be honest.

Her mother continued to rant and continue to banter with Darian, Blair, and her daughter and I was an inch away from blasting the obnoxious Lucario with a Flamethrower. She was incredibly irritating.

Annoyingly enough, my ears started to twitch when she started raising hell over Lucy leaving this 'Prince Nexus' at the alter. So she was supposed to be married. What did I care?

Groaning, I slapped a paw over my face, completely irritated at this point. _Please let this end soon._

**To be honest, this isn't the place where I was originally gonna stop this chapter but after getting to this point my mindset was just fuck it. I'm done. I'm done with this chapter. I'm uploading this right now. Also, since I've now put Lucy's last name into this, I'm gonna go ahead and list the last names of the more major characters down below. NOW hopefully it won't take me nearly as long as it did this time to upload, but I'm not gonna promise anything as of yet. Bye for now~**

**List of characters:**

**Lucina (Lucy) Alfaro**

**Sly Redfox**

**Blair Irvin**

**Darian Ibarra**

**Tsubaki Valentine**

**Drax Faber**

**Gale Finley**


	10. Chapter 10: Reunited

**I apologize for the long wait once again. I just had a lot of writers block and I just couldn't really get myself motivated enough to write. While I do have some later chapters somewhat figured out as far as plot wise, this is one I hadn't planned out very well and I got a little stuck on it (I HATE TRANSITIONING). But, I've been working on it ever so slowly and tonight I finally finished up the last few hundred words or so. So, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, and I don't own Pokemon.**

**OH, and one more thing. Sly's last name has been changed. I couldn't think up a suitable one when I made it, so I just kinda went with 'Foxtrot', much to my disappointment. From now on, his last name is "Redfox"...(I watch a lot of Fairy Tail ok) (and has also been changed in the last chapter where it was first mentioned)**

**AND FUCKING HELL, before I forget again, props to 'LovingTogetic' for coming up with the design for Lucy's bandanna. I was honestly stumped for a design, I'm not good at fashion related shit. Thank you very much**

**Chapter 10: Reunited**

~Lucy~

This is agonizing...we'd been arguing for over ten minutes and she wouldn't budge a single bit. I was getting to the point of just walking away, but that wouldn't do me any good. Nobody in the crowd had said anything yet, it was just a banter between us, Darian, and on occasion Miss Blair when mother said something nasty about the Guild or Guildmaster.

The Queen Lucario barred her teeth for the hundredth time today. "You are coming with me and that's final! Gavin, seize her at once!"

My ears perked at the mention of Gavin. Gavin Alfaro, my grandfather. I already knew he was here since I could sense his aura, but I hadn't expected her to bring him into this fight. What would he do? He caught me as I was escaping and allowed me to go free. Surely he wouldn't side with her, would he?

Grandfather walked ever so slowly in my direction, a look of concentration adorning his tired face. He suddenly looked so old and worn. My heart was pounding, he was the one person I valued the most. If it came to a struggle I would not fight him.

Grandfather now stood in front of me and reached a hand out. I clenched my eyes shut, waiting for his paw to grasp my arm tightly as he prepared to force me back home. Instead, I felt a gentle touch as the Gracidea flower atop my head was removed. I quickly opened my eyes to see the old Lucario toss the delicate flower into my astonished mother's paw.

"I should have never let Darnell marry you."

She was at a loss for words now, stuttering angrily as her mind continued to process the words grandfather threw at her. "I-I...H-how dare you!"

"Aurora, you were never fit to rule. You nor your mother. A queen or princess should be selfless, kind, humble, trusting, and respectable." Selfless? I mentally flinched. I wasn't selfless...I abandoned my own people_ because_ I was selfish. "While you do not seem to have any of these qualities, Lucy would make a wonderful queen. Even so, nobody is going to force her into a life she doesn't desire, not even you. Now, let's take our leave and stop bothering these explorers. We are disturbing their work." He turned to smile at both me and the audience, uncaring that he just insulted the queen in front of the entire Guild.

Nobody had ever dared speak against the Queen Lucario, at least not to her face, and mother stood gaping."You'd dare speak insult me? Such an act deserves punishment!" A cold smile graced the queen's faced. "And I have just the thing. Gavin Alfaro, you are hereby banished from our territory! If you are spotted within our borders, you are to be arrested immediately. If you resist capture, we will use any force necessary to bring you in!"

There were gasps from the remaining Lucarios, as well as a few from our 'audience'. "F-father will never let you do this!"

"My child...who said he has to know?" She grinned wickedly. She was actually going to lie to him?!

My gaze hardened. "My child? Don't flatter yourself. From this point on, I no longer have a mother, _Aurora_."

That certainly set off a nerve as I watched her supress a menacing growl, her eyes holding nothing but anger at my words. "Guards...seize them both!"

The guards looked fearful as grandfather and myself took to fighting stances, drawing forth bones of green energy. With solemn looks, they brandished their own as well and made move to advance. I didn't blame them one bit. They each had families, children and wives. Aurora would banish the guards if they did not obey, and by default, their families would leave as well.

As they inched ever closer to us, a barrage of attacks separated us, a stream of fire coming extremely close to the queen Lucario.

"What is the meaning of this?"

Darian looked at Aurora with a disapproving gaze. "Lucy may be your daughter, but she is still a member of my guild. This could have easily been settled upon privately, but instead you have made this a public display, meaning this is now our business as well. If you wish to continue, be warned: We will not idly stand by while our comrade is in distress." Darian's speech was emphasized as the Pokemon began charging various attacks.

Miss Blair held her ignited stick towards Aurora. "You are no longer welcome here. I suggest you leave."

She sent the Braixen a nasty glare, but ordered the guards to back off anyways. They may be powerful, but the small band of Lucarios wouldn't be able to take down an entire guild.

She sent a glare my way as well. "I'll be back for you." With that, she turned abruptly and the guards followed her out, bowing sorrowfully as they glanced between me and grandfather.

I turned to the older Lucario, my ears drooping in sadness. "I-I'm so sorry. If you hadn't have had to stand up for me, this wouldn't have happened. It's all my fault…"

Giving me a warm smile, he reaches up and ruffles the fur on top of my head. "Nonsense, child. I already knew the consequences of my actions, but I did what I thought was right. Besides, I've been wanting to do that for years." He winked and let out a few chuckles.

"Lucy!" I yelped as I was lifted off the ground and into a bone crushing hug. "Why didn't you tell us you were a princess?" Tsubaki pouted, setting me down and leaving me covered in bits of green and purple slime.

"I just...didn't want anyone to know. I ran away...if word had gotten out, they probably would have been here even sooner. Also, since I did abandon my duty, I pretty much forfeit that title anyway."

Drax tilted his head slightly. "You don't act like a princess, though. You act more, ah….'normal'."

"That's because she wouldn't listen. Five years of training completely wasted." Grandfather cracked a smile. "She's always been more of the adventurous type."

My paws on my hips, I smirked at the elderly Lucario. "Well, I wonder who I got it from! Last I recall, you weren't exactly the best influence."

Grandfather let out a deep laugh. "That I wasn't!" When Lucy was a little Riolu I used to sneak her out of the castle to go on patrols or gather berries with me. I also used to tell her stories about famous Exploration Teams. Ah, but as Lucy grew older and evolved into a Lucario, her mother put a stop to that very quickly."

"Then it was nothing but proper etiquette and all that malarky. They finally stopped when they realized I wasn't going to listen. Father was pretty ok with it, but mother was far from pleased."

"She doesn't seem pleased about most things." Drax observed.

"Unless she gets her way. It was a real pain. I don't understand why father puts up with her." I sighed.

"He's loves her, dear. Ever since he laid eyes on her. Love can make you do crazy things."

He smiled fondly, most likely remembering his wife, Judith. She died not long after I was born.

"But...what will you do now? You have no place to stay, and someone won't be along with your things for at least a few days." I looked down, fiddling with my paws.

"I'm sure something can be arranged." I glanced up as Darian and Miss Blair approached. "Good evening, Gavin. It is nice to see you again."

Grandfather chuckled. "Darian! I haven't seen you since you were a cute little Deerling! You look well."

"Um..Y-yes. It has...been a while." The Sawsbuck stammered, a bit of a blush on his cheeks.

Drax and Gale both gaped beside me. "D-did Darian just stutter?" The question seemed to make the Normal/Grass Type a bit uncomfortable.

"Ah, still with the formalities. Throw him for a loop though and he's all stutters." He sent a teasing smile the Guildmaster's way.

Darian shuffled awkwardly for a moment before collecting himself once more. "Yes. Well, I believe I have a solution to your predicament. There is an extra room near the dining hall if you'd care to stay." Darian paused for a moment and continued when it looked as if grandfather was about to protest. "In turn for staying, you would of course be paid for your services."

The Lucario raised an eyebrow. "My services?"

"Yes. If you have not heard by now, a couple weeks ago the Starlight Guild suffered heavy damage from a nighttime assault. The Pokemon responsible are still at large."

"I'd not heard of that. We don't get much news unless we ourselves venture out, or traveling Pokemon drop by. But I am to assume that I would be guarding the guild at night, then?"

Darian nodded in response. "That, and I imagine some of our members would enjoy a spar or two with a former guard captain." He chuckled.

"Haha, how can I say no to that? I have a job, a place to live, and I get to see my favorite granddaughter everyday. It's a deal!"

**Chapter's a bit shorter than I wanted it, but I thought this was a nice place to end it off. I'm not promising anything when it comes to when I'll update next, but I'll try and get it done sooner. If I don't update in awhile, I'm honestly extremely sorry**


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